SA Police battling gun training ‘backlog’ after Fort Largs academy firing range closure
Hundreds of SA Police operational personnel face a “backlog” of weapons training as the academy firing range closure puts pressure on an officer shortage crisis.
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Hundreds of SA Police operational personnel face a “backlog” of weapons training as the academy firing range closure puts fresh pressure on an officer shortage crisis.
Sensitive police documents, released under Freedom of Information laws, lay bare high-level concerns at “disruption” to Fort Largs academy recruit training.
Senior police said a training “backlog” will be cleared by year’s end after the firing range was closed for almost five months for safety reasons.
A briefing paper for Police Commissioner Grant Stevens last year warned urgent action was needed to ensure almost 300 trainees could graduate with sufficient weapons training.
A police spokesman on Tuesday said the 169 protective service officers and 125 police cadets did not miss gun classes but instead trained at an Adelaide Hills outdoor range at Echunga.
Documents show the Hills site is limited to “static” gun training and not “moving” drills that are taught in Adelaide.
Only eight officers could safely use the range, which was restricted to daytime shooting subject to no inclement weather, the papers state.
While senior officers warned operational training “will be impacted”, the report states a chief inspector, now retired, was “satisfied” officers could safely walk the beat.
Police clairifed the backlog affected operational weapons training.
Another report, for acting Commissioner Linda Williams in December 2023, warned failure to urgently upgrade Fort Largs and Echunga sparked “ongoing risk” to operational activities and concerns recruits would fail to “graduate on time”.
“This will place government, Commissioner … and (SA Police) subject to media … opposition, PASA (Police Association) and community criticism,” the report concluded.
Police accepted advice to immediately shut the range in October last year because the “obvious structural damage was far too prominent and unsafe to not close (it)”, papers show.
Officer in charge of SA Police’s People, Culture and Wellbeing Co-ordination Branch, chief perintendent Stephen Howard said training was delayed.
“We haven’t reduced the competency or the level of training for our operational police that is important,” he said.
Chief Supt Howard, who oversees academy operations, said many cadets hadn’t fired or handled a gun so “dry” drills for a Smith and Wesson 40 calibre semi-automatic pistol were important.
He said officers rarely fired a gun and as a last resort, so other tactical options are taught over 81 days such as crisis communication, withdrawal, open hand combat as well as use of batons, pepper spray, tasers and handcuffs.
“I guess what was underestimated was when we increased the number of courses, it accelerated the wear and tear on the (range),” he said.
“One aspect is that we increased the amount of training in that range, and next time, we’ll be better prepared (to) understand the consequences of (it).”
He said police took safety “seriously” and immediately stopped training when advised, forcing officers to explore different options.
“Our training is pretty well back,” he added.
South Australia has no private indoor ranges.
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